JOHN ROBERT BEDNARSKI

WASHINGTON HIGH SCHOOL AND RIDER UNIVERSITY

Bednarski coached baseball for more than 30 years at many youth levels including Mustang, Bronco, Pony, Colt, Legion, and Palomino as well as high school and college. Highlighting his youth coaching were several City League championships, multiple Regional (All-Star) championships, two Zone Tournament (All-Star) semifinal appearances and one runner-up finish. He served as Trinity High School’s Junior Varsity baseball coach for six seasons with his teams never losing more than two games a season, including a perfect 19-0 showing from his 1990 team. After serving two years each on the coaching staffs at Canon-McMillan and Myrtle Beach High Schools, he coached one season at Waynesburg University in 2006. He started playing American Legion baseball at 15 years old and was selected to the Western Pennsylvania All-Star game. A three-sport letter-winner and starting shortstop in high school, John helped the Little Prexies win three section championships with a WPIAL semifinal appearance during his sophomore season. He also lettered in football and basketball. At Rider, Bednarski also earned three basketball letters and was the baseball team’s co-captain. His single-season batting averages were .295, .316, and .323. He led the team in batting average and home runs in 1960. After graduation, “Bee” signed with the Minnesota Twins and played three years in the Minor Leagues, including stints with Wytheville, Va., and Fort Walton Beach, Fla. He batted .350 in Wytheville (Appalachian League) in 1961, and then was promoted to Fort Walton of the Alabama/Florida League, where he played third base and finished with a .281 career Minor League batting average. His softball career spanned 20 years, ten of those years with Sol Mintz, where he was part of many World Tournament appearances and championships. He was also a key member of legion champion softball teams in Brookline and Claysville. A veteran of the United States Army, he passed away on Jan. 2, 2023, at the age of 84.